CMDS Canada partners with missions organizations around the world. To learn more about the missions we are partnered with, pleased read more about them below. To donate to support their important mission work, please visit our donation page. All donations are tax deductible.

Angola

CMDS Canada Partners with CEML in the work they are doing in Angola

History

The 27-year civil war destroyed much of the infrastructure in Angola. Amidst the on-going destruction, Dr. Steve and Peggy Foster have lived and worked in Lubango for the past 20 years. They have stood fast to their call to minister to the Angolan people. Make-shift clinics, running on generators and faulty equipment, were conducted in the bush, serving thousands of people, without so much as running water.

After the end of the civil war in 2003, the clinics in the bush operated as usual and were sought after by locals. The vision was to open a state-of-the-art facility to serve the Angolan people. The Lubango Evangelical Medical Centre (CEML) is now a reality and was officially dedicated on June 20, 2005.

There are a number of pressing needs with regard to healthcare in this area. Our goal is to raise money for the CEML Hospital in Lubango, to equip a Biochemistry Lab and to fund the next year's Flying Doctor programme to help doctors and surgeons reach the surrounding hospitals, which have no doctors—only nurses!

CMDS Canada partners with Education Congo, formerly known as the North American Liaison Bureau, as they work towards a Strong and Health Congo through Education.

Envision a university in the heart of Africa which has grown from 3 - 8,000 students over 50 years. That is the Université Protestante au Congo (UPC) in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. Founded by various Protestant denominations, the University’s student body represents all aspects of Congo’s diverse population. In fact, over 50% of the student body is women. From the original School of Theology, the University has now expanded to include Schools of Business, Law and most recently, the School of Medicine. The Medical School at the University has graduated three classes of doctors to date. 2016 saw 89 new doctors take the Hippocratic Oath after eight years of medical school, including a one-year internship in a rural hospital. In keeping with its mission, UPC is the only university in Congo whose medical school's mission is to train physicians who are committed to serving the rural population of the country, where 75% of the Congolese population lives, but less than 20% of the doctors practice. Spend a few minutes with UPC's Medical Interns on their morning rounds at the Christian Medical Institute of the Kasai (IMCK) / Good Shepherd Hospital, the rural hospital in Tshikaji, DRC.

Education Congo has also supported the rural hospitals in Kimpese, Tshikaji and Vanga, where the University students spend their internships by supplying equipment and doing building upgrades.

Because there was a need, Education Congo was established as a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit which raises awareness and support for Congo. Many of the University students do not have the money for the annual tuition of only $650-$850. During the 2015-2016 school year, over 100 students received full or partial scholarship funds from Education Congo.

You can be a part of Congo’s growth: Make a contribution to support Medical School scholarship funds and/or special projects at the University. Thank you!

CMDS Canada partners with Lifeline Malawi with the work they are doing in Malawi

History

Malawi is located in the southern part of Africa. It has a mostly rural population struggling to overcome classic problems of poverty, famine and drought. It is one of the poorest countries in the world, with 75% of its population living on less than $2 a day. Water-born diseases are rampant due to the lack of clean water. In the Ngodzi rural community southeast of Lilongwe, Lifeline Malawi, a Canadian humanitarian organization, established its first medical outreach.

Outreach

In 1998, Dr. Brooks initially worked with a small staff to provide a medical presence in the community. The health conditions and medical needs of the local Yao tribes were desperate. Through donations, the Ngodzi property has now been developed into a mission house and a medical complex, the Lifeline Ngodzi Health Complex (LNHC), offering full-time, primarily out-patient, medical and health-related services to the Ngodzi and the surrounding communities. In 2005, Lifeline Malawi became an approved Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) centre for HIV. The construction of another 800 sq. meter Centre of Excellence has been undertaken and is expected to handle 4,000 patients per month. To better serve the Ngodzi and Dowa/Kasungu districts, the weekly outreach clinics will be expanded into more neighbouring villages. The result of these mobile clinics will increase the combined patient load to over 8,000 per month.

Planned Expansion

Maternal mortality is high in Malawi and the Government has recently set goals which include improving maternal health, reducing maternal mortality and increasing the number of births attended by skilled healthcare staff. In order to reach these goals they have asked Lifeline Malawi for their participation. Lifeline Malawi is planning to introduce three phases of maternal services over the next 2 to 5 years.

Phase 1: Family planning, ARV treatment for women not pregnant.

Phase 2: Antenatal, PMTCT

Phase 3: Construction of a Maternity ward and Mother’s Lodge.

With the introduction of maternity services LNHC would become a health centre with overnight stay capacity. They could have a significant impact on maternal, foetal and neonatal mortality in the area, by offering even basic obstetrical services. For more information on this project, please contact the CMDS National Office.